Chapter 21: A Long Story
Driving past the open theatre. They soon could see clusters of buildings forming by the side of a foot hardened dirt road. A slow but visible change took place as they went deeper into the town. Soon the small dirt roads and open plains were replaced by a large brick road, pubs and alleyways along with the occasional stalls and wagon stand by the sides.
The queer calm wind by the outskirt was trampled by the bustling sound of a town. They've finally arrived in Dalheim Ricciacum.
Seeing a large market by the sides of the main road, Chad brought his horse to a stop.
"Hey," He got off the caravan and walked towards the back.
"I am going to ask around for information. Anyone else wanna come with me? Only one person should-"
"I'll go." Dream raised his voice.
"Alright." Said Chad glancing over at the disappointed Shadow and Aoife.
"You guys keep guard of the caverns- wait where is Johnny?"
The three of them froze before Dream quickly spoke up.
"He is taking a nap in the back of my caravan. Do you want me to wake him up?"
"Ah," sighed Chad in relief. "Yeah wake him up. Three heads guarding the caravans are better than just two."
Dream crawled up to the back of the caravan with his shoes raised behind him. Inside Johnny was lying down in a matted area with his head on a straw pillow. A light tattered blanket was wrapped around him as he faced the wall of the caravan.
"Hey, Johnny." Dream quietly said while gently touching his shoulder.
He shivered before slowly rolling around to face Dream.
"Hey. I and Chad are going to ask around for information. You are going to have to keep watch with Shadow and Aoife while we're gone. Is that okay?"
Johnny shook his head feverishly.
"Huh, why?" Asked Dream.
Johnny looked at him with obvious bemoaning.
"Shadow is a psycho."
"Huh? Well, Aoife is also here-"
"She's a girl. What if Shadow disappeared leaving the two of us alone?"
Dream:"..."
Shadow:"..."
That logic… It sounds right, but wrong at the same time.
"But wait. Aoife can beat my ass."
"But she's a girl. A GIRL!"
It was decided that Aoife would be going with Chad as he dragged her away by the hand and long sword as Shadow and Dream watched on dumbly.
Dream thought. 'This dumb brat… So what if she's a girl? She wields a f*cking long sword! Gender and race are stripped away in the face of raw destructive power! What was he doing? Was he trying to get us beaten half to death?!'
He stared angrily at Johnny before noticing that Shadow was also watching him, but unlike him, Shadow had a look of deep comprehension and reminisce.
"Shadow?"
"Huh?"
"It's nothing." Dream looked back at Johnny who had disappeared back in the caravan.
'That brat...'
Kicking at the ground Dream and Shadow stood guard beside the caravans.
Bored, Dream looked at the people passing by them. The road was wide enough to fit three caravans and their horse in a straight line with some extra space in between.
Wagons and other caravans were passing by them along with some odd heavily armoured men on horses.
Watching them all pass by, Dream eventually started seeing patterns in the moving population.
First of all, there were the local merchants with their wagons of goods, then there was the high number of lightly armoured people to which Dream presumed to be the mercenaries of this world. These people were all outfitted differently in one way or another, but they all had one thing in common. They all had a metal armour plate strapped around them with a piece of the darkly tanned leather belt along with a piece of almost skin-tight sheet metal around their waist. Along with that, they all seem to have varying types of leather armour wrapped around their arms and knees.
Then, there were also some plain dressed bystanders with staffs and slings by their waist and hands and finally, the heavily armed horsemen who he assumed were the constables of this town.
Dream could only glumly look down at his torn chainmail and gambeson discontentedly.
Sensing his discontentment Lux chuckled lightly. "Perhaps out of the three, you were the one who's lost the most. Yet could it not be said, that at the same time you've gained the most valuable things of all? Experience and bravery?"
Hearing her words Dream straighten up his posture. 'Speaking of experience might I ask you about your experience with old Gui? What are you and what do you have to do with the mark on my back?'
"You want to know?"
'Yes. Please do tell.'
"It's quite a long story… Where should I start? Hmm. Perhaps we should start with the end of it all. You."
'Me?'
"Yes, you Dream. The one with a false name, but it can't be helped due to your circumstances. Way before Gui's dying breath we've long decided that you will be my host."
'So can I kick you out?'
"Perhaps, but you will immediately die a swift, but all the most gruesome death that even your dearest enemies wouldn't wish upon you."
'Huh.'
"Actually if I wish so I could leave at any given moment-"
'So I'm at your mercy?'
"Yes, ever since you've lived out your first life your existence was laid bare and naked in the palms of my hands."
Dream:"..."
'That's going to keep me up at night. Oh well, at least you saved my life I think?'
"Yes, I gave you awe-inspiring flame power that can conquer even the darkest of dungeons and I even talk to you on a miserable lonesome day like this. I am truly a generous and dazzlingly benevolent being. I should be worshipped to high heavens and be heaped upon with mountains and mountains of riches from ancient kings and lords!"
Dream grinned. "Oh, yeah? F*ck you."
"Hey, what are you smiling about?" Shadow nonchalantly asked from beside him.
"It's nothing." Replied Dream. "Just thought of something dumb."
Shadow silently looked away. "You know, guard duty is the worst."
"Yeah."
…
Five minutes have passed before Chad and a calmer looking Aoife has returned.
According to them, weapons and food appear to be the most commonly traded items around the town, but due to Dalheim Ricciacum being a frontier town located by the borders of the kingdom of Agrela.
Farmlands tended to be located far away in case that Dalheim Ricciacum was ever overrun by foreign invaders. The local farmlands would not aid them in conquering the rest of the kingdom.
As Dalheim Ricciacum and the nearby outer lands were bare of any food source.
Most previous successful invaders have retreated or been beaten back due to a lack of food provision as an army had many mouths to keep.
Outlanders: "where are the f*cking food?"
Agrelars: "~\-_-/~"
Since Dalheim Ricciacum didn't have any farms, that meant that they had to rely on outsourced food from other parts of Agrela which could be easily cut off in wartime.
Hence whenever the Outlanders tried to invade they were either beaten to a crisp or starved then beaten.
In other words, food was expensive here!
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Book_Knight
Book_Knight Conflicted with how much I should edit as I am lazy... I sometimes think that I should rename this to 'Dreams of Food'or something like that.
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